Subhechcha Ganguly 
Bhabani Shankar Chayani, Collector, Cuttack
Bhabani Shankar Chayani, the incumbent Cuttack collector, won rave reviews from Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for his exemplary fight against the virulent Covid pandemic. Mr Chayani did not avail of a single day of leave after his father’s demise and joined duties soon after performing the cremation rituals, thus demonstrating his unmatched commitment to combating the pandemic and saving people’s lives.
After a marathon effort to curb Covid and a drastic drop in recurring Covid cases, Chayani recently announced to stage the historic Bali Yatra after a hiatus of two years.
“The annual fair was suspended in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID pandemic, but the situation continues to be normal as present, it will be organised this year. Taking into account the drop in Covid cases, we are optimistic about hosting Baliyatra this year. The State government had recognised Cuttack Baliyatra as a State-level festival in 2019,” said Chayani after inaugurating the recent three-day Cuttack Kite Utsav.
“Baliyatra attracts a large number of people from across the state and outside. Because of Covid, we cannot afford to have such a huge congregation of people. It might aggravate the situation as various new strains of Covid are already in circulation in other cities of the country.” He added, “We have been grappling with the coronavirus for more than one and a half years. This time we need to be more cautious to curb the deadly virus. Hence, the administration has decided not to organize the annual fair this year.”
On the banks of the Kathajodi and Mahanadi rivers, there will be no formal Boita Bandana (sailing of miniature boats) and no religious congregations will be allowed during Kartik Purnima. According to Chayani, rituals will be observed according to Covid guidelines. In order to ensure a smooth Baliyatra, several government departments, including roads and buildings, energy, fisheries, the Cuttack Municipal Corporation, and others, coordinate their efforts from August onwards.
Baliyatra is one of the major festivals for the residents of Cuttack, a city with a legacy of more than 700 years. It is considered the oldest maritime trade fair of the state.
Chayani said that the focus for him as the collector of Cuttack was to set a time limit for resolving people’s grievances. Towards this end, he will strengthen the Grievance Management System to make it more people-centric with the deployment of technologies. Moreover, he said he will personally oversee all the complaints pertaining to drainage in Cuttack.
“Our officials are working tirelessly to ensure that government schemes are percolating to beneficiaries. I will streamline coordination among the officers to improve service delivery and scheme outcomes”, he said.
Chayani was in the spotlight for wrong reasons recently when Fraudsters allegedly created a fake WhatsApp account in the name of Cuttack Collector Bhabani Shankar Chayani and demanded money from multiple individuals. Scammers created a fake WhatsApp account with the number 769691815 in Bhabani Shankar Chayani’s name.
In response to the incident, the Collector filed a complaint with Cuttack DCP alleging that some miscreants had created a fake WhatsApp account in his name using his photo, which had been downloaded from the internet, on the profile photo for the WhatsApp number (769691815).
The collector is also sensitive to the concerns of the electricity consumers in Cuttack.
“People can get solutions to their grievances themselves or with the help of customer care executive. The token system has also been introduced to maintain social distancing along with the Self-help system at the customer care center. I hope the team at the TPCODL customer service centre team and their employees will provide the best service to the people in Cuttack with the help of digital systems”, he said at the inauguration of a new Customer Care Centre (CCC) at CDD – 1 Electrical Division Office of TP Central Odisha Distribution Ltd (TPCODL), a joint venture between Tata Power and the Government of Odisha.
Chayani is an administrator of rare calibre, yearning for people-centric reforms. His stint as the collector of Cuttack could prove to be an inflection point for the holistic progress of the millennium city.
